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Politics & Government

Romney Wants Higher Teacher Pay

Republican Presidential candidate told Vernon Hills Town Hall beginning teachers should be paid more.

wants to increase the pay of new teachers and give parents more choice in ways to educate their children if he is elected President this year.

Romney shared his ideas on schooling in answer to a question from a person “in education” at a Town Hall Meeting tonight in Vernon Hills where slightly less than 500 people stuffed themselves into an overheated gymnasium while 200 more listened on speakers outside.

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“We should pay our beginning teachers more,” Romney said. “The national unions are too interested in benefits for the older teachers.” He would also do what he could to give parents options like charter schools.

Hearkening back to his days of governor of Massachusetts, Romney explained what he learned about effective schooling and how he made changes in a state where he worked as a Republican executive with a Democratic dominated legislature.

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“They said make classroom size smaller,” Romney said. “I studied that. There was no relationship between classroom size and how the kids did.” He said the same was true for spending per pupil.

“It is what the kids experience in the classroom,” Romney said about what makes successful education.

Romney decried the falling standards of education in the country. “How can the country that invented public education have fallen so low,” he asked? He mentioned countries like Singapore and Finland have better public education today.

Check back tomorrow morning for Patch’s complete story on the Town Hall with Romney’s ideas on job creation, foreign policy and other issues. Patch will have the reaction of who has endorsed the former governor and spoke at the event.

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